


Make A Wish

by Anyawen



Category: James Bond (Craig movies)
Genre: 007 Fest 2020, Accidental kisses, Birthday Parties, Don't copy to another site, Exploding pens, Fluff, Gen, Glitter, Humor, Karaoke, and also slightly drunk, cupcakes and drinking, deliberate kisses, everyone is a little bit punch drunk, illegal stills, surprise parties, team00
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-28
Updated: 2020-07-28
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:48:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,541
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25566946
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anyawen/pseuds/Anyawen
Summary: After running a long mission, with political ramifications to keep the executive staff nearly as busy as Q and his minions, Bond reminds Q that it's Moneypenny's and Tanner's birthday. An exhausted Q and his staff throw together a kick-ass party on the spot, featuring cupcakes, illegal alcohol, karaoke, and glitter. Also, unexpected kisses.
Comments: 8
Kudos: 22





	Make A Wish

**Author's Note:**

> Fills the 2017 anonymous prompt “Everyone, including Tanner, forgets it's Tanner's birthday -- a crisis abroad will do that for you. But the MI6 Squad makes up for it with a late surprise birthday party! Could also be done with Moneypenny.” and the 2018 anonymous prompt “Q branch making glitter bombs in pens because people keep stealing them.”

Q has spent the last 47 hours running Bond’s mission. The agent, and the asset he’s protecting, are finally on their way to London from Germany. Q is exhausted, and can’t wait to get home to his cats, to shower, possibly eat something, and fall into bed.

“Q?”

Q is instantly back on alert at Bond’s voice over comms.

“Bond. Problems?”

“No, everything is fine. We’re at the airport. Our flight is about to begin boarding.”

“Oh. That’s good, then. Was there something that you needed?”

“It’s twenty-sixth August.”

“For the next six hours or so, yes.”

“Q. Twenty-sixth August is Tanner’s birthday. And Moneypenny’s.”

“Oh, bollocks,” Q cursed quietly.

Not quietly enough. R looked up, worried. He shook his head, but waved her over.

“Neither of them said anything when they were here earlier,” he hissed at Bond. “They’ve been in and out all day.”

“Tanner always forgets. Moneypenny usually reminds him, but I imagine she’s been run ragged helping M deal with the political fallout of Jäger’s death while you’ve been helping me get his son to safety. She’s probably been too busy to keep track of what day it is.”

“Right. Well. Given they’re both sticklers for getting their paperwork done before going home, I’ve got time to pull something together. Thank you for reminding me. I’ll take care of it,” Q said.

“Save me a drink.”

“You won’t be here for hours.”

“I’ll take a rain check, Q. Have a drink with me.”

“Ask me when I’m not trying to organize a spur-of-the-moment surprise birthday party.”

“I will.”

“Good. And get going, Bond. Don’t miss your flight.”

Q ended the call and turned to R.

“You heard?”

“That he invited you out for drinks? Yes, I heard,” R teased.

“You’re fired,” Q said. “But not until you help me organize this party. We need food. Drinks. Cake. Music. Confetti. Whatever. And we need it now. As soon as their paperwork is done, Tanner and Moneypenny will go home.”

“I’ll place orders for food and cake,” R said calmly. “You go talk to Kevin about drinks.”

“Oh, god. Has he been brewing something in the Swamp again?”

“Brewing and distilling, and the results are actually very good.”

“I really shouldn’t know about this,” Q said, shaking his head. “But, needs must. Parties need social lubricant, so I’ll conveniently forget about the illegal still in the Swamp in the morning.”

R grinned as she pulled out her phone to place orders to have food delivered. Q rolled his eyes and walked to Kevin’s desk.

The minion in question had been working in the department for nearly 3 years. He wasn’t Q’s best coder, but he was dependable. And well-liked. He was personable, but Q knew that his popularity with his colleagues was primarily because of the hobby for which he’d quietly taken over an unused room in the R&D tunnels. Hardly more than a closet, it was large enough for the pots, buckets, bottles, and tubing required to brew beer, and to distill ... well. Something approximating vodka. 

Kevin assured Q that he had enough spirits to make the evening festive, and organized a list of mixers and a team of volunteers to run out and get them.

Q breathed a sigh of relief, then realized that he needed a space for the party. Thinking quickly, he recalled that the work on 003’s Jaguar had been completed, so that work space was currently available. He texted R and Kevin so they’d make sure the food and drink were delivered to the right place and drafted Milo and Elizabeth to drag in a few tables and chairs, and left them with orders to bring music into the garage.

"Presents," he muttered to himself, running a hand through his hair.

There was a prototype he'd been working on. More of a gag gift for Bond than anything else. But, it was possible that the part of it he'd meant as a joke might actually be useful for Moneypenny and Tanner. He smiled and hurried to his office.

Thirty minutes later R poked her head in to let him know the food had arrived. Kevin was setting it up in the garage with the drinks. R said she’d make sure to catch Moneypenny and bring her downstairs, if Q could manage to get Tanner.

Q picked up his phone and called Mallory. R grinned at him and disappeared.

The party was a smashing success.

R had organized Italian food from Angelo’s, Chinese from a shop around the corner from MI6 that was a staff favorite, and Greek from a hole-in-the wall near her flat. She’d also bought out everything remaining in the display cases at Patty Porschen cakes as they closed for the day. Q had had two cupcakes, and was eyeing a third. The Eton Mess cupcakes went surprisingly well with the cranberry citrus punch Kevin had created, and his keg of brown ale had been a hit. Milo had come through with music in spades, wiring up speakers and bringing in not only his iphone and extensive playlist, but also a karaoke machine. Mallory, it turned out, had a surprisingly good singing voice.

His gifts —from MI6, naturally— had also been well received.

The fountain pens, with purple ink for Eve and black ink for Tanner, had been rigged with a microscopic explosive and a packet of gold glitter. Each came with a proximity sensor to be mounted in their desks, so that if someone with sticky fingers wandered too far away with them, they’d learn their lesson as they shed craft herpes for days.

“Oh, here he is,” a tipsy Eve said, sliding into the chair next to Q.

“Here I am, indeed,” he said, smiling at her enthusiasm and nodding to Tanner, who sat in the chair on Q’s other side.

“You did this,” she said, waving a hand around the room.

“I had help,” Q pointed out.

“Yes, but you did this. And you deserve a kiss for it.”

Q didn’t have time to argue before Eve was leaning in and planting a kiss on his cheek. He laughed and pushed her away, turning to Tanner just in time for Tanner’s lips to land on his.

Next to him, Eve giggled so hard she fell out of her chair, and Q just knew that at least one of his minions had caught Tanner’s kiss on camera. He caught Bill’s eye as the other man pulled back, amused, but apologetic, and he grinned and raised an eyebrow. If the minions were going to try to embarrass him over that accidental kiss, well.

Bill leaned back in. It was a very nice kiss that dissolved into giggles on both sides.

“You know, it was Bond who reminded me it was your birthday,” Q told them.

“Oh, well then. I think that means he deserves kisses, too,” Eve said, climbing back into her chair.

“And I’d be happy to collect them,” a voice said from behind them.

“You’re back early,” Q said, turning around to find Bond pulling a chair from the neighboring table.

“I’m not, actually. You just throw a killer party.”

“It’s been three hours?” Q asked, surprised. The flight from Hamburg was less than 2 hours long, with added time for customs and traffic …

“Nearly four.”

“I had no idea so much time had passed.”

“Time flies when you’re having fun, and given the kiss I witnessed when I arrived, you’re having a very good time,” Bond said, drawing chuckles from Tanner. “And I suspect,” he continued, reaching past Q to pick up his drink from the table, “that Kevin’s punch packs a bit more of a kick than you’d expect.”

He sipped the punch and made a considering expression before finishing off the rest of the glass.

“That was mine,” Q protested.

“I’ll get you another drink,” Bond replied. “Another time. Come on, let me get you home.”

“Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” Tanner advised, trying —and failing— to keep a straight face.

“You just had your tongue down his throat,” Bond observed.

“Birthday kisses,” Eve said. “I’m still waiting for mine, James.”

James smiled and stood up, pulling Eve to her feet. She slid her arms around his neck as he leaned in and gave her a gentle peck on the nose, then laughed delightedly as he dipped her and brought her back up for a quick kiss on the lips.

“Bill?” Q said. “Your turn.”

“Thanks, but I’ll pass. Maybe next birthday.”

“You’ll forget,” Eve said. “But I’ll remember.”

“Happy birthday, Eve, Bill,” Bond said, nudging Q and taking a few steps toward the door. “Come on, Q. You’ve been here for days. Your cats miss you.”

“All right, all right, I’m coming,” Q replied, rising.

Eve put a hand on Q’s arm and Tanner tried to hide a grin as Bond walked away.

“Wait for it,” Tanner whispered.

“Wait for what?” Q asked.

There was a tiny popping sound from the hall outside the garage, followed by cursing and laughter.

“He stole my pen,” Eve said as a gold-dusted Bond stepped back into view.

“You built them exploding pens?” he demanded, grinning too hard to sound affronted.

“Best birthday ever,” Tanner crowed.


End file.
